Late-night footage from inside Maricopa County’s tabulation center appears to show election employees connecting flash drives to election computers shortly after the county completed logic and accuracy testing for the November 3 election. The video, obtained by We the People Alliance and reported by The Gateway Pundit, has raised questions about what was being done, who could observe it, and whether the equipment remained under proper control.
The group says the workers left at about 6:23 p.m., returned around 9:08 p.m., and stayed until 11:15 p.m. A timestamp in another portion of the footage reportedly shows flash-drive activity at 10:38 p.m. The group also says a child was present. Those details come from the watchdog group’s account of video obtained from a private source rather than the county’s public feed.
Maricopa County described the activity as "working on a legitimate election task, late into the night" and said the tabulation center is available for public viewing around the clock. Shelby Busch, a co-founder of We the People Alliance, disputes that explanation of transparency. She said the county did not identify the task that required the late visit and that the footage shared by WTP USA did not appear in the public livestream.
The report included the following video and social media posts:
Ok. Cat’s out of bag now.
Yes. The camera that caught Ramirez was not a public feed.
See pics for the 4 public views.
No. Ramirez did not think anyone was watching him.@ThomasGalvin @KateMcGeeAZ @DebbieLesko @MarkStewart_AZ #Gallardo are now trying to figure out how that… https://t.co/2nHf29zs5m pic.twitter.com/eo0HDvupt1
— AzPinkLady #SaveArizona #SaveAmerica (@AzPinkLady) October 10, 2026
🚨BUSTED: Exclusive Video of Maricopa County BOS employees (toddler in tow) in highly secure Ballot Tabulation Center at 10:30pm inserting flash drives into computers (Post L&A) during an active election obtained by our source! Additional video obtained shows 3 hours of activity… pic.twitter.com/EqoOzQR9TY
— We the People USA Alliance (@WethePeopleAZA1) October 9, 2026
In re: late night election center access:
My team and I have spoken with the Recorder and the Recorder’s Office and I was briefed by the County Manager regarding these images.
The County Manager confirmed that both individuals were county election department employees, and… https://t.co/A53fOCsxRa
— Mark Stewart Maricopa County Supervisor District 1 (@MarkStewart_AZ) October 10, 2026
The key question is what the drives contained
Video can show a device being connected, but it does not establish what files were on it, whether anything was installed, or whether election data changed. Busch said the concern was not a presumption about the drives’ contents, but the sight of unlocked secure computers and external devices being used without public oversight. She also raised questions about how the drive was handled before and after the visit.
The report identifies one worker as Brian Ramirez, a county election employee who was previously accused of deleting files before equipment was provided to Arizona Senate auditors after 2020. The Gateway Pundit also says it has not independently verified Ramirez’s involvement in the new footage. That caveat is central because both the worker’s role and the purpose of the activity remain unconfirmed.
The timing also echoes a prior dispute cited in the report. During Kari Lake’s 2022 court proceedings, Maricopa County acknowledged installing new memory cards on Election Day tabulators on October 14, 17, and 18, after the required October 11 testing. The earlier equipment changes and subsequent machine failures became part of the controversy surrounding that election.
For the current election, county testing occurred on October 5, while the footage described in the report is dated October 7. That close timing is why watchdogs are asking whether any post-testing work was authorized, documented, and observable. The available material does not answer that question.
Why It Matters
The stakes reach beyond one late-night visit because certified election equipment is supposed to be trusted by voters, campaigns, and officials alike. When external devices appear in the picture after testing, the public needs a clear account of the purpose, authorization, supervision, and recordkeeping involved. Without that explanation, even routine maintenance can be interpreted as a threat to the chain of custody. That does not prove wrongdoing, but it does show why a vague response is unlikely to settle the dispute.
The people most affected are Maricopa County voters and election workers whose procedures may be judged through the lens of this episode. The broader issue is whether transparency means a camera exists somewhere, or whether the relevant activity can actually be seen and explained. The unresolved questions are practical: what the drives contained, who approved the work, whether the computers were locked before and after use, and whether the visit was documented. Answering those questions with records rather than speculation would help separate a legitimate task from conduct that requires investigation.
What the current record shows
The current record supports a narrower conclusion than the most serious accusations. The footage, as described, appears to show late-night access and flash-drive use, while the county says the activity was legitimate. It does not establish that equipment was altered or that votes were affected.
The Gateway Pundit reported that We the People Alliance said relevant details had been sent to authorities. Until the county identifies the task and explains how the external devices were handled, the central question remains unanswered: what work was performed inside the tabulation center that night?
Source: The Gateway Pundit
